Rotary valve head

ABSTRACT

The R.V.H. (Rotary Valve Head) is a three way valve system designed to replace the head and valve train of four stroke combustion engines. Valve opperations are carried out with one rotating component. This is accomplished by rotating a cylinder with a concave inside a chamber with three openings. These openings are the intake, exhaust and combination ports. The combination port and cylinder form the top of the combustion chamber. Two main benefits result. Less energy is consumed in this system than traditional valve systems. Also, larger chambers can be utilized for the flow of gasses into and out of the combustion chamber.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

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STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

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REFERENCE TO SEQUENCE LISTING, OR A COMPUTER PROGRAM LISTING COMPACT DISC APPENDIX

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BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The R.V.H. (Rotary Valve Head) is an invention in the field of mechanical engineering. Specifically the R.V.H. is a system designed to replace the valve train in internal combustion engines.

Four stroke engines are inherently inefficient. The functions necessary to make them work are achieved by utilizing inefficient components. Traditionally, lifters, push rods, rocker arms and valves are forced by a cam to reciprocate against the resistance of valve springs. This process consumes a great deal of energy. Overhead cam designes have eliminated some of these components. Although fewer moving parts consume less energy, overhead cam designes are stil inefficient.

Not only do these components consume a great deal of energy, they are also restrictive. Hemi-heads and multi-valve configurations improve the flow of gasses. These are only partial solutions however, and appear to have reached their limits. Turbos and superchargers address lack of flow by force. These methods increase flow at a great cost of energy consumption.

I invented the R.V.H. to improve these deficiencies.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The R.V.H. is comprized of three primary components. A base and cover fit together to form the intake and exhaust ports. A rotor fits between the base and cover. The rotor is driven by a timing belt at half the speed of the crank shaft. As it spins, a concave in the rotor opens the intake and exhaust ports in time with the movement of the piston(s). The ports are closed by a cylindrical portion of the rotor.

The R.V.H. replaces the head(s) and cam and eliminates the lifters, push rods, rocker arms and valves of traditional engines. The R.V.H. does not work against the resistance of valve springs and replaces reciprocal motion with more efficient centripital motion. Therefore, the R.V.H. consumes less energy. An additional benefit is the elimination of valve float at high RPM's.

The R.V.H. minimizes restrictions to flow. Nearly the entire top of the cylinder opens to allow the filling and expelling of gasses. The ports are also larger, with reduced angles. By increasing flow, the R.V.H. increases the yield of internal combustion engines.

BRIEF DISCRIPTION OF THE 27 VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a three dimensional view of the R.V.H. and block sectioned in half as the illustration of the invention and dependent parts.

FIG. 2 is a two dimensional view of the same section as FIG. 1. FIG. 2 is used for part identification and utilizes arrows to illustrate the movement of parts.

FIG. 3 is an assembly drawing of the R.V.H. Other than gaskets, FIG. 3 shows all of the parts of the R.V.H. and how they fit together.

FIG. 4 is a three dimensional view of the R.V.H. base to assist in the clarity of FIGS. 5 through 13.

FIG. 5 is a top view of the R.V.H. base.

FIG. 6 is a bottom view of the R.V.H. base

FIG. 7 is an end view of the R.V.H. base. The opposite end is identical.

FIG. 8 is the section view taken from 5-8.

FIG. 9 is the section view taken from 5-9.

FIG. 10 is the section view taken from 5-10.

FIG. 11 is a side view of the R.V.H. base. The opposite side is identical.

FIG. 12 is the section view taken from 5-12.

FIG. 13 is the section view taken from 5-13.

FIG. 14 is a three dimensional view of the R.V.H. cover to assist in the clarity of FIGS. 15 through 23.

FIG. 15 is a top view of the R.V.H. cover.

FIG. 16 is a bottom view of the R.V.H. cover.

FIG. 17 is an end view of the R.V.H. cover. The opposite end is identical.

FIG. 18 is the section view taken from 16-18.

FIG. 19 is the section view taken from 16-19.

FIG. 20 is the section view taken from 16-20.

FIG. 21 is a side view of the R.V.H. cover. The opposite side is identical.

FIG. 22 is the section view taken from 16-22.

FIG. 23 is the section view taken from 16-23.

FIG. 24 is a three dimensional view of the rotor used to clarify FIGS. 25 through 27.

FIG. 25 is a side view of the rotor.

FIG. 26 is an end view of the rotor. The opposite end does not have bolt holes, but is identical in every other way.

FIG. 27 is the section view taken from 25-27.

DETAILED DISCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The R.V.H. (Rotary Valve Head) is a three way valve system intended to replace the head and valve train of four stroke combustion engines. A rotor in a valve chamber opens and closes the intake and exhaust ports. Secondary systems include a bearing system, a seal system, an oil delivery system and a cooling system.

The primary systems are comprised of a valve chamber and rotor. The valve chamber is made of metal. Various metals can be used depending on the application. The rotor can be made of various materials including metals and industrial ceramics.

A cylinder is bored through the length of the valve chamber to form the rotor cylinder. (For rotor cylinder details, see 5-7,9-5,13-6,16-13,20-11 and 22-7 of the drawings.) Three passages are cut from the outside of the valve chamber to the rotor cylinder. The first is a rectangular passage which forms the exhaust port. (for exhaust port details, see 2-9,5-2,9-6,13-7,16-12,19-8,21-2 and 21-3 of the drawings.) The top of the exhaust port bisects the rotor cylinder 46.5 digrees from the top of the rotor cylinder. The bottom of the exhaust port bisects the rotor cylinder at 133.5 digrees. The exhaust port extends through the right side of the valve chamber. The second passage is an imperfect cylindrical passage which forms the combination port. (For combination port details, see 6-4,6-16,9-8, and 13-9 of the drawings.) The combination port bisects the rotor cylinder at 136.5 and 223.5 digrees. The combination port extends through the bottom of the valve chamber. The third passage is a rectangular passags which forms the intake port. (For intake port details, see 2-5,5-2,9-6,13-7,21-2 and 21-3 of the drawings. Also note, the intake port is a mirror image of the exhaust port.) The bottom of the intake port bisects the rotor cylinder at 226.5 digrees. The top of the intake port bisects the rotor cylinder at 313.5 digrees. The intake port extends through the left side of the valve chamber.

The rotor is a cylinder with a concave. (For rotor details, see FIG. 24, 25-1, 26 and 27-3 of the drawings.) The concave is the rotor mouth. The rotor mouth extends most of the length of the rotor. The ends of the rotor remain cylindrical. The rotor mouth extends 90 digrees around the circumfrance of the rotor.

The R.V.H. replaces the head, head components, cam, lifters and push rods of four stroke combustion engines. One rotating part performs the functions of all of these reciprocating parts.

The R.V.H. attaches to the engine block in place of the head. Four bolts fasten the R.V.H. (For these smooth bore bolt hole locations, see 5-1,8-4,12-3,15-2, 16-7,18-5 and 23-9 of the-drawings. A head gasket separates the bottom of the R.V.H., 6-17, and the engine block.) The same bolts fasten the thermostat housing to the R.V.H. The intake and exhaust manifolds are fastened to the sides of the R.V.H. with four bolts each(For bolt hole locations, see 11-1 and 21-1 of the drawings). Gaskets separate these components for containment purposes. A timing belt and gears connect the rotor and crank shaft. (For details of these components, see Timing belt 2-11, crank shaft gear 2-14, rotor gear 2-8 and rotor gear bolt holes 26-2 of the drawings.) The rotor is driven clockwise at half the speed of the crank shaft. (If driven counter clock-wise, the intake and exhaust ports are reversed.) A timing cover attaches to the end of the R.V.H. and engine block. A gasket separates the timing cover to contain oil. Four bolts fasten the timing cover to the R.V.H. (For bolt hole locations, see 7-2 17-1. 17-2 is the surface where the timing cover attaches, of the drawings. Bolt holes in the opposite end of the R.V.H. may or may not be used to fasten other components.)

The valve chamber without the rotor would allow flow through all three ports. With a cylinder placed in the rotor cylinder, flow would be blocked through all three ports. Three quarters of the rotor is cylindrical. The cylindrical portion of the rotor blocks the ports. The remaining quarter of the rotor is the rotor mouth. When the rotor mouth is between either the intake or exhaust port and the combination port, the block between them is removed. The center of the rotor mouth indicates the rotor position. 0 digrees is at the bottom of the rotor cylinder.

The intake stroke occures as the rotor travels from 0 to 90 digrees from the bottom of the rotor cylinder. The block between the intake and combination ports is removed as the rotor travels from 1.5 to 88.5 digrees. At the same time, the piston travels down the cylinder. (FIGS. 1 and 2 of the drawings shows the R.V.H. and dependent components in the middle of the intake stroke. The rotor is 2-6, the piston is 2-12, the wrist pin is 2-2, the piston rod is 2-13, the crank shaft is 2-15 and the intake port is 2-5. The rotor mouth 2-4, removes the block.) A low pressure condition in the cylinder results. Atamized fuel diffuses from the intake manifold to the cylinder.

The compression stroke occures as the rotor travels from 90 to 180 digrees. The cylindrical portion of the rotor blocks the combination port. Together, the sides of the combination port and the cylindrical portion of the rotor form the top of the combustion chamber. The piston is designed to fit the shape of the combustion chamber. Also during the compression stroke, gasses remaining in the rotor mouth are expelled into the intake port by centrifugal force. At the same time, the piston travels up the cylinder compressing the atamized fuel.

The combustion stroke occurrs as the rotor travels from 180 to 270 digrees. The combustion chamber, formed during the compression stroke, is maintained throughout the combustion stroke. The spark plug ignites the compressed, atamized fuel, a few digrees of crank travel before the combustion srtoke. (The spark plug is shown in 2-10 of the drawings.) Expanding fuel and air force the piston down the cylinder.

The exhaust stroke occures as the rotor travels from 270 to 0 digrees. The block between the exhaust and combination ports is removed while the rotor travels from 271.5 to 358.5 digrees. At the same time, the piston travels up the cylinder. A high pressure condition results. Spent fuel diffuses from the combustion chamber through the exhaust port.

At the end of the exhaust stroke, the rotor mouth is in position to start the intake stroke. The cycle continues with the continuous centripetal motion of the rotor. The best timing and duration of valve operations depends on other engine components. The above example is used for its simplicity. Timing can be altered by changing the position of the rotor or the ports. Reducing the size of the intake port increases the velocity of atamized fuel intering the combustion chamber. Duration can be altered by changing the digrees of circumfrance across the rotor mouth. A 100 digree rotor mouth may be a more suitable starting point. The trailing edge of the rotor mouth is shown at a 90 digree angle from the leading edge. To efficiently utilize centrifugal force to expel atamized fuel from the rotor mouth, the angle of the trailing edge should be increased.

The design of the R.V.H. is altered to accommodate support systems. Alterations are also made to allow assembly and provide space for a spark plug(s).

The diameter of the ends of the rotor and rotor cylinder are reduced to accomidate bearings. A two part bearing system limit movement of the rotor. Outer bearings limit axial movement. These bearings are sealed on the outside but allow oil to flow into them from the inside. The reduced size of the ends of the rotor and rotor cylinder limit play from end to end. Other methods may also be used to limit rotor movement. (Outer rotor bearings are shown in dotted lined in FIG. 3. The ends of the rotor are shown in FIG. 24,25 and 26. For details of the ends of the rotor cylinder, see 5-4, 5-5, 7-1, 8-3, 13-5, 13-8, 16-10, 16-11, 17-3, 18-6, 22-5 and 22-8 of the drawings.)

The valve chamber is split to allow assembly. The split is made through the center of the rotor cylinder creating a base and cover. (For details, see base FIG. 4, cover FIG. 14, assembly FIG. 3, gasket locations 5-11 and 16-5 of the drawings.) To assure trueness of cylinder bores, bores are made with base and cover torqued together with gaskets in place.

A seal fits in a groove within the larger bore of the rotor cylinder. This is the rotor seal. The rotor seal contains oil between itself and the sealed bearings. The rotor seal also aids in blocking the ports. (For the only necessary view of the rotor seal, see FIG. 3. For seal groove location, see 5-6, 10-9, 10-11, 13-11, 16-14, 20-12 and 22-6 of the drawings.)

Oil is delivered to the area between the seal and the sealed bearings through small passages in the valve chamber. Exit passages lead to a pressure valve which maintains pressure in the bearings. (For oil passages, see 15-1, 16-6, 18-4 and for one possible location of the oil pan, see 2-1 of the drawings.)

The angle of the intake and exhaust ports are altered to provide space for the spark plug(s). Angled ports also reduce restrictions to flow. (Spark plug holes are shown on both sides of the R.V.H. base. 2-3 of the drawings shows a plug in one of the spark plug holes. Either or both may be used. For spark plug hole locations, see 6-15, 9-7, 11-2 and 13-10 of the drawings.)

Coolant enters the R.V.H. through the thurmostat housing and flows through channels to the engine block. (For cooling system details, see 2-7, 5-3, 10-10, 12-4, 15-3, 15-4, 16-9, 20-10, 22-4 and 23-10 of the drawings.) This cools the R.V.H. and provides access to the engine block. The R.V.H. may also be used with air cooled engines.

Many parts are mentioned for their support role, but are not a part of this patent application. These include the thermostat housing, intake and exhaust manifolds, timing cover, timing belt, timing gears, piston, wrist-pin, piston, rod, crank shaft, engine block, piston cylinder, spark plug, bearings, oil pressure valve and gaskets. Any of these parts shown in the drawings are shown in broken lines.

The R.V.H. may be used in any four stroke combustion engine application. For multi cylinder engines, the R.V.H. Is lengthened and rotor mouth locations are stagered to accommodate timing. 

1. I claim as my invention a valve chamber, with three passages, one being the intake port, one the exhaust port, and the other a combination port, which combines with a cylinder with a concave to form the top of the combustion chamber, successively opening and blocking channels through the ports as the cylinder rotates, achieving valve timing in a four stroke internal combustion engine.
 2. I claim a cylinder with a concave, used with a valve chamber to accomplish the above functions. 